The Laboratory Notebook
The laboratory notebook is a permanent record of activities carried out in the
laboratory. Each experiment that you conduct in this course must be written up, in detail,
in your laboratory notebook. Although the style of a notebook depends to some extent on
the author, there are certain guidelines that everyone should follow, particularly with
respect to the laboratory write-ups.
The first two pages of your laboratory notebook should be reserved for a Table of
Contents. Each experiment must be listed according to the title, the date on which it was
carried out, and the page on which the experiment can be found in the notebook. Most
laboratory notebooks come with the pages already numbered; however, if yours does not,
it will be necessary for you to number them.
During the first week of lab, the instructor will sign a page in your notebook to
help verify that this is the one and only notebook for your data.
Each time you perform an experiment in the laboratory, you will develop a write-
up (or report) in your lab notebook. It must include the information outlined below.
Title, Date, and Name
The title of the experiment and the date on which the experiment is performed
must appear at the beginning of each laboratory write-up. Your name, and the name of
any lab partners, must appear at the top of each page.
Objective
Each laboratory write-up must begin with an objective. The purpose of the
objective is to describe, in as few words as possible, what the experiment is about. It
should consist of two or three sentences stating the purpose of the experiment (What are
you trying to accomplish?) and briefly mention any concepts, equations, or theories
utilized.
Procedural Outline
The purpose of the Procedural Outline is to briefly summarize the steps involved
in carrying out the experiment. This is an outline; therefore, you should not copy the
directions as they appear in the lab manual. Instead, you should carefully read through the
experiment so that you are familiar with all aspects of the procedure. Then, generate an
outline so that you can perform the experiment without the aid of the manual. The more
conscientious you are about preparing for lab, the more efficient and effective you will be
in the laboratory.
